Productivity growth and the regional dynamics of antebellum southern development
By: Alan L. Olmstead, Paul W. Rhode
Contributors: Rhode, Paul Webb; National Bureau of Economic Research
Series: NBER working paper series -- working paper 16494; Working paper series (National Bureau of Economic Research : Online) -- working paper no. 16494.
Publisher: National Bureau of Economic Research
Published: 2010
Place of publication: Cambridge, MA
Language: eng
Format: [electronic resource] /
Description: "Between 1800 and 1860, the United States became the preeminent world supplier of cotton as output increased sixty-fold.  Technological changes, including the introduction of improved cotton varieties, contributed significantly to this growth.  Measured output per worker in the cotton sector rose four-fold and large regional differences emerged.  By 1840, output per worker in the New South was twice that in the Old South.  The economy-wide increase is explained, in equal measure, by growth in output per worker at fixed locations and by the reallocation of labor across regions.  These results offer a new view on the dynamics of economic development in antebellum America"--National Bureau of Economic Research web site.
Notes: Title from PDF file as viewed on 1/11/2011.

Includes bibliographical references.

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Mode of access: World Wide Web.